Mathematics Research related to College Readiness and Common Core Standards
Supporting Implementation of Common Core State Standards for Mathematics: Recommendations for Professional Development Download Report
Principal Investigators:
Paola Sztajn, North Carolina State University
Karen Marrongelle, Oregon University System
Peg Smith, University of Pittsburgh Project Manager:
Bonnie L. Melton, North Carolina State University
From Introduction The recommendations . . . are intended to support large-scale, system-level implementation of professional development (PD) initiatives aligned with the CCSSM. They emerged from the work done under the auspices of a NSF-funded project, which provided the opportunity for experts from diverse fields to collaboratively address the challenge of providing high-quality mathematics PD at scale to support the implementation of the CCSSM. Over the course of the project, researchers and expert practitioners worked to integrate various perspectives on this challenge into a set of design recommendations for creating, sustaining, and assessing PD systems for practicing mathematics teachers. Generated from the coordination of research-based knowledge in different but related fields, these recommendations build on state-of-the-art research findings from mathematics education, PD, organizational theory, and policy.
North Carolina State University, College of Education, March 2012
College for All: Gaps Between Desirable and Actual P–12 Math Achievement Trajectories for College Readiness Download
Jaekyung Lee, State University of New York at Buffalo, Graduate School of Education, Buffalo, NY
Abstract
This study addresses missing links in “college for all” debates by investigating gaps between actual and desirable math achievement trajectories for students’ college readiness. Linking multiple national data sets across P–16 education levels, the study estimates college readiness benchmarks separately for two-year and four-year college entrance and completion. The goals of the study are to compare performance standards, benchmarks, and norms for college readiness and to assess college readiness gaps among all students as well as gaps among racial and social subgroups. The results suggest that entrance into and completion of two-year versus four-year colleges require substantially different levels of math achievement in earlier education periods and that meeting national versus state proficiency standards leads to differences in postsecondary education outcomes and can mean the difference between bachelor’s and associate’s degree attainment. Persistent racial and social gaps in college readiness threaten the goal of getting all students academically ready for at least two-year college completion.
EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER March 2012; vol. 41 no. 2: pp. 43-55
Assessing the Quality of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics Download
Paul Cobb and
Kara Jackson
Abstract
The authors comment on Porter, McMaken, Hwang, and Yang’s recent analysis of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics by critiquing their measures of the focus of the standards and the absence of an assessment of coherence. The authors then consider whether the standards are an improvement over most state mathematics standards by discussing whether the core mathematics ideas on which they focus are appropriate, whether individual standards are organized into coherent learning progressions, and whether their implementation is feasible. They question whether schools and districts currently have the capacity to support effective implementation, and they call for improvement-oriented investigations that can inform the development of effective implementation models.
EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER, May 2011; vol. 40, no.4:pp. 183-185
Explaining Gaps in Readiness for College-Level Math: The Role of High School Courses Download
Mark C. Long(corresponding author) University of Washington, Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs, Box 353055, Seattle, WA 98195–3055. marklong@u.washington.edu
Patrice IatarolaDepartment of Educational Leadership and Policy, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306–4452. iatarola@coe.fsu.edu
Dylan CongerTrachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052. dconger@gwu.edu
Abstract
Despite increased requirements for high school graduation, almost one-third of the nation's college freshmen are unprepared for college-level math. The need for remediation is particularly high among students who are low income, Hispanic, and black. Female students are also less likely than males to be ready for college-level math. This article estimates how much of these gaps are determined by the courses that students take while in high school. Using data on students in Florida public postsecondary institutions, we find that differences among college-going students in the highest math course taken explain 28–35 percent of black, Hispanic, and poverty gaps in readiness and over three-quarters of the Asian advantage. Courses fail to explain gender gaps in readiness. Low-income, black, and Asian students also receive lower returns to math courses, suggesting differential educational quality. This analysis is valuable to policy makers and educators seeking to reduce disparities in college readiness.
Supporting Implementation of Common Core State Standards for Mathematics: Recommendations for Professional Development Download Report
Paola Sztajn, North Carolina State University
Karen Marrongelle, Oregon University System
Peg Smith, University of Pittsburgh
Project Manager:
Bonnie L. Melton, North Carolina State University
From IntroductionThe recommendations . . . are intended to support large-scale, system-level implementation of professional development (PD) initiatives aligned with the CCSSM. They emerged from the work done under the auspices of a NSF-funded project, which provided the opportunity for experts from diverse fields to collaboratively address the challenge of providing high-quality mathematics PD at scale to support the implementation of the CCSSM. Over the course of the project, researchers and expert practitioners worked to integrate various perspectives on this challenge into a set of design recommendations for creating, sustaining, and assessing PD systems for practicing mathematics teachers. Generated from the coordination of research-based knowledge in different but related fields, these recommendations build on state-of-the-art research findings from mathematics education, PD, organizational theory, and policy.
North Carolina State University, College of Education, March 2012
College for All: Gaps Between Desirable and Actual P–12 Math Achievement Trajectories for College Readiness Download
Abstract
This study addresses missing links in “college for all” debates by investigating gaps between actual and desirable math achievement trajectories for students’ college readiness. Linking multiple national data sets across P–16 education levels, the study estimates college readiness benchmarks separately for two-year and four-year college entrance and completion. The goals of the study are to compare performance standards, benchmarks, and norms for college readiness and to assess college readiness gaps among all students as well as gaps among racial and social subgroups. The results suggest that entrance into and completion of two-year versus four-year colleges require substantially different levels of math achievement in earlier education periods and that meeting national versus state proficiency standards leads to differences in postsecondary education outcomes and can mean the difference between bachelor’s and associate’s degree attainment. Persistent racial and social gaps in college readiness threaten the goal of getting all students academically ready for at least two-year college completion.
EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER March 2012; vol. 41 no. 2: pp. 43-55
Assessing the Quality of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics Download
Abstract
The authors comment on Porter, McMaken, Hwang, and Yang’s recent analysis of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics by critiquing their measures of the focus of the standards and the absence of an assessment of coherence. The authors then consider whether the standards are an improvement over most state mathematics standards by discussing whether the core mathematics ideas on which they focus are appropriate, whether individual standards are organized into coherent learning progressions, and whether their implementation is feasible. They question whether schools and districts currently have the capacity to support effective implementation, and they call for improvement-oriented investigations that can inform the development of effective implementation models.
EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER, May 2011; vol. 40, no.4:pp. 183-185
Explaining Gaps in Readiness for College-Level Math: The Role of High School Courses Download
Abstract
Despite increased requirements for high school graduation, almost one-third of the nation's college freshmen are unprepared for college-level math. The need for remediation is particularly high among students who are low income, Hispanic, and black. Female students are also less likely than males to be ready for college-level math. This article estimates how much of these gaps are determined by the courses that students take while in high school. Using data on students in Florida public postsecondary institutions, we find that differences among college-going students in the highest math course taken explain 28–35 percent of black, Hispanic, and poverty gaps in readiness and over three-quarters of the Asian advantage. Courses fail to explain gender gaps in readiness. Low-income, black, and Asian students also receive lower returns to math courses, suggesting differential educational quality. This analysis is valuable to policy makers and educators seeking to reduce disparities in college readiness.
AMERICAN EDUCATION FINANCE ASSOCIATION, 2009